Diagnosis: Deja Vu
by D0ubleFelix
Summary: Good old "Mess". Captain of the basketball team, debate club, student council, and the only person more popular than that one Lucas kid, who Ness may or may not have had a big dumb stupid crush on in high school. Maybe it was fate that put Ness in a hospital bed, and perhaps it was destiny who introduced him to a nurse with a very pretty face. Perhaps a face a little too familiar.


**Yah so I don't really write one-shots, but I suddenly got the idea to write this one for some reason, and I liked it.**

 **Quick warning. This story contains:**

 **-Maybe some big kid words.**

 **-There's mentions of blood and the sampling of it. If you're squeamish to needles, maybe skip that part.**

 **I also just noticed that both of my one-shots have to do with hospitals. (Except this one is drastically more lighthearted.)**

 **I've never written a straight up happy story so please bare with me,,,,,**

* * *

Ness couldn't quite remember what had happened, as his eyes fluttered open to the bright glow of fluorescent lights above him. Several voices murmured around him. A steady beeping droned on nearby. The air smelled like disinfectant and chemicals. There was a stinging in his chest, and upon trying to move, he barely even shifted. As his vision cleared, he blinked a few times, and looked around as much as he could. Finally, he snapped back to reality, and realized where he was with a grunt, catching the attention of those around him.

"Hospital. _Fuck._ " He muttered, pouting, "I'm in the hospital."

His eye instantly caught the person standing right next to him; his apartment neighbor and best friend of ten years, Ninten. Ness' body relaxed as Ninten noticed him and gasped. Ninten worriedly dropped to Ness' level, gripping the edge of the hospital bed with incredible force. The other people, all clad in scrubs and obviously medical staff, backed away to let the two converse.

"Ness! Gloryoski, thank the lord and whatever else is up there!" Ninten breathed, "How you doin', Angelface?"

"I...I'm in the hospital, for starters," Ness shrugged and weakly laughed a bit as his friend helped him sit up. Ninten clicked his tongue.

"Well, duh, that ain't rocket science. I mean how's your arm? The one that got snapped in half?" Ninten gestured to Ness' right arm, which was neatly wrapped in a cast. Ness, who hadn't noticed the injury, furrowed his brow and groaned in frustration.

"I can't feel it. This is just _great..._ " Ness sighed, wincing at the dizziness in his head, "Aye aye aye...my head's bugging me, though. I hope there's no damage."

"Damage was already _there_ , Einstein. You're not invincible, and wearing a helmet isn't just some myth!" Ninten swatted his hand upside the back of Ness' head, like a parent scolding their child, "You could've gotten seriously hurt on your bike thing! Good god, those are stupid, why do people ride those?"

"Okay, it's called a _motorcycle_ , and they're cool. Those girls who live down the hall from us _totally_ dig it." Ness insisted, as the memory of what got him in the hospital came back to him, "I wouldn't have even gotten hurt if the guy on the right had just stayed in his lane. Who knows, maybe if he practices, he could learn how to use a signal one day."

"For heaven's sake, don't lose your temper. You know what they say about guys with short tempers." Ninten hissed, smacking his rolled up magazine against Ness' shoulder.

"Oh, shut your trap, _Nelson,_ " Ness sneered, before turning to the two staff members who'd been patiently waiting, "So, what's the buzz, nurse one and two? I'm not dying, am I?"

The first one laughed a bit, taking a step forward, "Far from it. Ness, is it? No, you're not dying. In fact, your injuries are pretty tame. A bit of internal bleeding that can be fixed, and obviously, your arm. Other than that, several lacerations, scratches, a few bruises. Typical things you'd see from a small crash. Oh, and lets not forget the head trauma. Mild, but still there. Perhaps wearing a helmet could've helped that."

The one beside her piped up next, "Also, we aren't nurses. You only have one nurse assigned to you, and he's just getting a few things ready for some blood draws. He should be up here later this afternoon."

"Okay, I draw the line at blood, I'm headin' out. Ness, love," Ninten looked back down to his friend, "I'm leaving, okay? I know you just woke up, but Mama has a job and all. I've already been late to the noon show once this week. It's bad enough I'm not in my mug yet."

"Yeah, you go to work." Ness assured, giving Ninten's hand a comforting squeeze, "Don't you worry about me, Darls. Knock 'em dead."

"Toodles!" Ninten called as he hurriedly made his way out the door, sashaying the whole time and waving a hand behind him. The two staff members nearby also prepared to go.

"We're gonna take off. Ring the pager if you need something, and _please_ try to rest." The first one pleaded, before they each disappeared.

"...Uh, yah. Okay." Ness murmured after they vanished, before snickering to himself, ' _Yeah, no. I'm not about to fall asleep in a hospital. Too scary."_

Five minutes later, Ness fell asleep.

Life milled on around him as he peacefully rested, stirring every now and then, but always fading out seconds later. Each time he'd wake up for just a few minutes, he'd remember what had happened to him, which would prompt him to try and move his arm, which would then send a wave of stinging down his body. It was a cycle that continued for nearly three hours, before Ness was woken by something else.

Once again, his eyes opened and squinted against the light. There was movement in the room, he realized. The sound of feet shuffling and items being moved around. He panicked a bit, freezing up upon realizing that someone was in the room with him. He quickly scrambled back into sitting and struggled to open his eyes all the way.

"Who...who's that?" He muttered, voice slurred from how tired he was. Turned away from him was another person dressed in light blue scrubs, quietly moving around several whatchamacallits that Ness didn't know the name or purpose of. They didn't turn around, but they perked up upon hearing Ness' voice.

"Just me, Ness. I'm glad to see you're awake." They happily replied. Ness was instantly calmed by their soft, smooth spoken voice. His vision cleared, and he watched with slight interest as this new person continued to gather things.

"...Yeah, Yeah, I'm up, and aware, and stuff..." Ness murmured, yawning, "You're a doctor, I bet?"

"Oh, nonono. If I was a doctor, I wouldn't be living in an apartment," The person laughed a bit at their own remark and turned, allowing Ness to see their face.

"I'm a nurse. Yours, more specifically. I'm Lucas."

Ness' heart stopped, and his eyes widened. 'Lucas' looked back at him with a small grin, brushing back a stray strand of blond hair. Ness opened his mouth to talk, but in that instant, his mouth went dry and his mind blanked. He'd _definitely_ seen those eggshell blue eyes before. The name, the voice, and even the way he _smiled_ was all familiar. Ness' eyes trailed to his name tag, and his suspicions were confirmed upon seeing the last name. He quickly gained a flush in his face and a flutter in his heart that was all too familiar.

"...A-ah...! Lucas, yes, hello!" Ness stammered, straightening his posture even more and tidying his hair to make himself look presentable, "...Aw _man_ , do I, uh...do I _know_ you from somewhere?"

Lucas' brow furrowed, and he shook his head, "I'm sorry, I can't say you're too familiar." He took a seat next to Ness and set down the contents he'd collected onto a bedside desk, before reaching into a drawer and pulling out a pair of gloves from a bulk box.

"Oh, okay," Ness said, slightly disappointed, but playing it off with his usual laid back nature, "Sorry, I just...thought I recognized you."

"Perhaps it happened somewhere." Lucas said gently, "Alright, Ness, here's what's gonna happen, okay? We need some blood samples from you, so I'm just gonna take this band over here..." He proceeded to wrap a blue tourniquet around Ness' upper arm. Ness' face went warm, and he averted his gaze to the side.

"Gotcha...w-wow, that's tight...!" Ness laughed nervously, struggling to keep himself composed, "What's with the squeezin', and the squishin'?"

"Well, it builds up the blood in your arm veins, so that I can draw some blood for these little tubes." Lucas explained, preparing to take the safety off of a butterfly needle.

Ness' entire body went cold, as he noticed the sharp pin, which was connected to a pipette, "B-blood? ...Y-you're gonna...you're gonna stick a needle in me? In my arm? W-why's it have to be in my arm? Why...why do we need a needle in the first place? Why's there have to be blood?"

Lucas noticed the patient squirming uncomfortably, scooting away from him a bit. He gave him a comforting smile, noticing his anxiety, "It's just gonna be a little poke, okay? I've done hundreds of these, and most of the time, they barely even feel it. No need to feel scared."

"I'm not...! No, I'm not _scared_ , it just startled me, is all. Go ahead and...d-do the thing." Ness turned away again, "Why couldn't you just use the blood that's on my clothes or something?"

"Sadly, we need fresh samples to make sure the treatment we use wont cause any problems," Lucas explained, "What I'm curious to know is what happened to you in the first place. From what I've been told, you were in a bit of a cycle crash, yes?"

"Oh! Yeah, yeah, I was. _I drive one of those, by the way,_ " Ness mentioned to the side, before continuing, "Yeah, uh...I skidded. I was just doin' my own thing, and, uh...there was...you know rabbits? There was one of those, just there in the middle of the road."

"Oh, dear." Lucas murmured with an amused tone, but still deciding to humour him. Ness, oblivious to Lucas' knowledge of what he was doing, continued.

"Uh...and...I was just thinkin', in that split second. Y'know? This little guy's life...is so much more important, right? I mean, I'm 23, I've lived a long and happy life. And this little rabbit, well, I love animals," Ness explained, with as much confidence and charm as he could muster in his voice, "So I swerved, and...sure, it put me in this bed, but that ferret got another chance at life, you know?"

Lucas nodded with a hum of acknowledgement, "Mmmm. _'Ferret?_ '"

"Rabbit, ferret, potato, tomato. We're all human." Ness shrugged to hide his mistake, "Okay, I think I'm ready. Go ahead and do the draw."

"You're already done." Lucas chirped, holding up one of the tubes and showing him the collection of crimson already in it.

"...Really?" Ness breathed quietly, looking down to his arm, where a cotton ball had been taped over the crook in his arm, "Look at that, it's done."

"See that? You didn't even notice." Lucas began to pack up, "Well, I'm going to run these over to where they need to go. Very nice meeting you, Ness. Remember to beep me if you need anything, okay?"

"Y-yeah, gotcha...! Thank you!" Ness called as Lucas left the room, leaving him alone. Ness watched the door for a second, before collapsing back against the bed frame, mouth open in shock. He sat there, thinking to himself in silence, before grabbing his phone which had been left by Ninten earlier. Seeking the outlet of his best friend, Ness quickly dialed him up. To his relief, it didn't take long for Ninten to answer.

"Hey Ness, how's she feelin', hm?" Ninten asked.

"Fine, I'm fine," Ness quickly assured, "Ninten, I have a question. I need to make sure I'm not crazy."

" _Tch tch tch_ , a bit of a tall order, but I'll try. Shoot."

"Okay, I know you'll make fun of me about this for ages, but..." Ness hesitated, "Do you remember Lucas from high school?"

"You mean that popular blond boy you had a big dumb stupid crush on? Didn't you have like, a shrine or something in your locker-"

"Sssssssshhhh, yes! Yes, that one...! We pinky promised that we wouldn't speak of the shrine again!" Ness hushed, flustered. He then looked around, checking to see if there were any possible listening ears or hidden cameras, before returning to the phone with a hand cupped around his mouth to muffle his voice, "He works at _this exact hospital_ , and is assigned to _this exact patient!_ "

" _Holy shit,_ " Ninten quietly muttered under his breath, before returning to normal volume, "He's your doctor?!"

"No, he's a nurse." Ness explained.

"He's _your_ nurse?! What're you doing talking to me, then?! Go talk to _him_ , Chickadee!"

"I did, I think I charmed like a _pro,_ " Ness proudly declared, reflecting on the conversation, "B-but he didn't remember who I was. He knows my name and everything. He says I'm not familiar! Not even a flicker! _Nada!_ "

"Relax, he probably just needs his memory jogged. Remember, it's been four or five years since you've last seen him. Also, wasn't he _super_ shy, too? He was pretty sociable, but really nervous, too. Maybe he just forgets faces easily."

"But you'd think he'd remember me! I mean, hello, I was the _only_ kid more popular than him. Also, captain of the basketball team? Debate club? Student council? MC at the pep rallies? How does he not know who I am? Hell, we were partners on a science project once! Remember that? We had a week to do it, but I got sick for most of it, and he had to do pretty much everything himself." Ness relayed the memory shamefully.

"You were _so_ guilty. Didn't you write him an apology letter? With the paper you didn't want to crinkle up, and the little envelope, and-"

" _Note_ , I wrote him an apology _note_. Big difference." Ness clarified, "I'm just...so freaked out! I mean, it's _him!_ In the flesh! Alone, in a room, with me! Do you know how many girls I just made jealous? What if I ask for his number or something, and he gets uncomfortable?" Ness suddenly gasped, "Ninten, I just realized something! What if he...y'know, _has_ someone?"

"He just might. Did you see a ring at all?" Ninten asked.

"No, so he's not hitched, I don't think. But that doesn't mean he's single!" Ness replied.

"He could be."

"Oh, be _realistic._ He's smart, he's sweet, and good _god_ , is he _pretty._ Ninten, you thought he was attractive in high school? You should see him _now._ Lucas probably found someone ages ago. Hell, he might not even be _gay_ anymore. Maybe he realized he was straight in a life changing crisis." Ness sighed.

"That did not happen, you dumb stupid idiot! You know what I say? Just be casual. Use that boyish charm of yours and say something clever," Ninten explained, "Oh! And don't forget about how much he loves animals. _Especially_ rabbits."

"Yeah, already tried that..." Ness trailed off.

"Alright, babe, I'm gonna let you go. Just tell him who you are, and he'll probably remember. Do _not_ let Grade 12 Ness be his first impression of you, got it? Do not bring back 'Mess' Wyman."

"Oh god no, Grade 12 Ness was a _disaster,_ with the braces, and the heelies, and the... _eugh.._." Ness shuddered, unable to think about it anymore, "Thanks, Ninten. Sorry for being a loser."

"It's what I'm here for, love. Catch you later."

Ness let his head fall back as he hung up. Staring up at the ceiling, he sighed, thoughts racing. Out of all of the people he could've met today, what good deed did he do to deserve Lucas? His thoughts trailed back four years ago, to the last time he'd seen him. Lucas was much shorter back then, not even clocking in at 5'4", with a much thinner, scrawnier figure. He'd definitely gone through a major growth spurt through the years, and he seemed much more well built and stocky. Ness could even figure that Lucas was taller than him now.

' _What else did he do, again?'_ Ness thought, as he tried to recall as many things about Lucas as possible. The first thing he remembered was the constant wearing of things like sweater vests and dress shirts. He couldn't remember seeing the blond in anything casual, except for when he was in his uniform. He did track and soccer, Ness remembered. And the cheerleading team. He was the only boy on the team, besides Ninten. He remembered how Lucas would always be in the school musical each year, only losing the main role to again, Ninten, who managed to scrape by with his years of voice training. Ness would see each production multiple times, just so that he could watch Lucas. He remembered how Lucas would always lean over to him from his desk and offer him a pencil if he noticed he didn't have one, and never demanded that he give it back. He remembered apologizing profusely for coming down with the flu during the one week they had to build a science project, and Lucas assuring several times that it was alright. The more Ness thought about him, the more he remembered why he had a crush in the first place.

And then he remembered _him_. The reason Ness was too afraid to make a move. Claus _._ _Freaking Claus_. The memory of the hot blooded red head came back like a tidal wave. One of Lucas' reasons for being so popular was the fact that he had a nearly identical twin brother, whose only difference was his bright orange hair and his green eyes, as well as his insufferable personality. Ness had never liked Claus, who knew full well about his infatuation with his brother. Claus often watched Ness like a hawk. Even during prom season, when Ness had finally worked up the courage to ask Lucas to go with him, Claus made sure that the two were constantly separated, and Ness never got the chance. Claus was also quite popular, but for all the wrong reasons. Opposite to his brother, who was adored for being kindhearted and pleasant, Claus was known for being, well, a dick.

Just thinking about him made Ness clench his hand into a fist.

' _Here's hoping that Claus is less of an asshat nowadays,_ ' Ness thought to himself, ' _That kid was the reason I never had any chance with Lucas. Well, guess what, Gingersnap? I'm gonna talk to him right now._ '

Impulsively, Ness reached over and pressed the 'help' button on his pager, and a beep sounded back. He leaned back, confident in his rebellion against his high school enemy. That was, until he realized that he'd paged Lucas. He began to panic, as he ran through several possible excuses he could use. He crossed his fingers and prayed that something would come to him. The last thing he wanted was to make Lucas worry about him for no reason.

' _Great first impression, Ness_ ' He thought bitterly.

He was caught completely off guard by a few short knocks on the door, and as expected, in entered Lucas.

"Hi!" Lucas chirped, "Everything okay?"

"U-um..." Ness blanked for a moment, "...Yes!"

"Well, you paged me. Do you need something?"

"Oh! Oh, is _that_ what this little button does?" Ness asked, pretending to be oblivious, "I-I was just pressing random things. I didn't know this, like, _called you_ over here."

"Er, yes. That is it's intended purpose," Lucas nodded, seemingly amused, "Might want to refrain from touching any equipment though, especially if you don't really know what it does. The time could come where you turn off your ventilator."

"Really!" Ness laughed nervously, "Wow, that...that would'a been kinda funny."

"Not quite. Chances are, you'd suffocate and die," Lucas said.

Ness blinked, "Ah." He casually leaned back, running a hand through his hair, "You know what? I think I do need something, Doc."

"Again, I'm not a doctor, but okay."

"You really know what I need right about now? Being in the situation I'm in? A guy gets lonely, y'know. I wish I just had some company, yeah? Someone to talk to. Maybe someone in my general age range." Ness hinted, resting his chin on his hand and making direct eye contact with Lucas, who raised an eyebrow.

"How sad." He said. Lucas looked him up and down a few times, the corner of his mouth quirking into a small smile, "Well..."

"Of course, that'd just be too much to ask of someone as busy as you." Ness shrugged.

"Actually, you caught me at quite a good time. I'm on my break in a few," Lucas explained, dragging a chair towards the bedside.

"I-I don't wanna impose on that, then...!"

"Nonono, you're my patient! Besides," Lucas sat down, "I'm quite new here. I'm usually alone on breaks."

"'New?'" Ness asked, internally celebrating for successfully hooking his old peer.

"Yeah. I only just recently graduated from nursing school." Said Lucas.

"R-right, school! I mean, before university, uh...you must've gone to high school, yeah?"

"...Yes...?"

Ness bit his lip, shifting uncomfortably from the awkward exchange. He thought back to what Ninten had told him, and sighed, "A-alright, um...I'm gonna cut to the chase. Did you go to Queen Mary's Highschool?"

Lucas' eyes widened a bit, "I did, yes...!"

"Okay, good, good. Did you sit in row two, desk five in Room 240's AP Science class?"

"...Y-yes?"

"Do you remember when you were supposed to recreate the chemical structure of methamphetamine, but your partner came down with the flu for five of the seven days you had to work on it, and you ended up doing the whole thing by yourself?"

Lucas stared back at him, slightly frightened by Ness' rambling. He replied in a quiet squeak, " _...Yes...?_ "

"That was me." Ness stated.

There were several moments of silence. Lucas' expression turned from one of concern to one of deep thought. He squinted, leaning forward to inspect Ness closer.

"Wait," He murmured, before his mouth dropped open in shock and his eyes went wide, " _Ness?"_

"Heh...yeah. Hey, Lucas." Ness' face flushed over again.

"Oh my god! Now I remember! I'm sorry, I thought maybe you were just a different Ness!" Lucas breathed, "I got the feeling it might have been you, but I didn't say anything, because...well, how awkward would it have been if it _wasn't_ you? Yikes, sorry, I'm rambling. It's just so nice to see you again, yeah? How _are_ you?"

"Well, I'm in the hospital." Said Ness. Lucas laughed at this, causing Ness' pulse to race again.

"Sure, there's that. But hey, you're alive, yeah? You look like you're holding up!" Lucas said, "Are you still in contact with your friend? How's he doing?"

"Oh, Ninten? Yeah, we're still close. We live across from each other in the same building, actually."

"Is he a drag queen yet?"

"Yyyyep."

"Wait, _actually?_ "

"Yeah, and a pretty well known one."

"Crazy. He always talked about how much he wanted to do stuff like that. Good for him," Lucas snickered a bit, "So, you live across from each other? Why don't you move in together?"

"He's already got a few roommates."

"Do you? Heh...knowing you, you've already found some girl." Lucas teased a bit.

"N-no! No, I'm _very_ much a single person. Just me, myself, and I. I am alone. A single pringle. I'm single." Ness stammered, trying to sound as composed as possible, before changing the subject, "How...how about you? Anybody catching your eye?"

"Oh, no, not really. Ever since I started working here, I've just been so busy. Dating's been hard."

"Interesting," Ness anxiously chuckled, "U-um...you wanna know something funny about high school? The thing is...uh...I actually...! Did you know that I...?"

"I know you had a crush on me, Ness."

Ness froze, his entire face beginning to turn red, "Wow! That was...sudden! U-um... _no,_ no I didn't."

"...Yes you did. It was kind of obvious to...everyone." Lucas smiled sympathetically, "Also, Ninten told me. Several times."

" _Did_ he, now?" Ness felt short of breath, thinking of all the ways he could kill his friend, before hanging his head in shame and sighing, "Hah...s-sorry."

"Don't be sorry, it was high school, crushes happen. Also, I wouldn't go as far as to call it a 'crush', but..." Lucas' eyes trailed to the ground, and he shrugged sheepishly, "...I _guess_ I thought you were kinda cute."

"Really!" Ness looked back up, fixing his hair with one hand and trying to make himself look presentable, "You...you thought that? Is it like a thing you only really thought in school, or am I still...y'know, cute?"

Lucas snickered bashfully a bit, once again observing Ness, and tipping his head in a shrug, " _Ehhhh._ "

"W-what's that supposed to mean?!" Ness asked, laughing. Lucas, who was also laughing, put a hand on his arm to assure it was all in good fun. Ness took a breath to compose himself, "Heh...okay, well...l-listen, Lucas, uh..."

"Yeah?"

"I'm just thinkin', y'know...I know I'm bedridden at the moment, but...if you're maybe interested in getting to know each other, maybe...? Maybe you and I can...? Just as a friendly meeting? We could...um..."

"Ness, are you asking me out?"

"Y-yes, that's exactly what I'm doing," Ness sighed, "Your brother kinda stopped me from doing so before."

"Good old Claus," Lucas chuckled, "I promise, he's a lot less... _Claus-ey_ now."

"I'm glad! Cuz, uhhh..." Ness glanced away sheepishly, "...I never got around to asking you, because I was afraid he'd beat me up."

"Aww, good old 'Mess' Wyman," Lucas cooed, amused as he referenced Ness' old nickname. He looked back at him sympathetically, "Ness, I really am flattered, but...see, the thing is, you're my patient."

Ness frowned, off put, "...Huh?"

"You're my patient. Being here with you is technically me doing my job, you know? The relationship between us should be more..." Lucas searched for a word, "...Professional."

"Oh! Oh, okay...I see, I get it." Ness brushed off his shoulder in an attempt to hide his utter despair and crushed heart, "That's alright. You're just a guy doin' your job, no biggie."

"Yah...I'm sorry, I just don't want to get in trouble." Lucas explained.

Ness nodded slowly, drawing in his bottom lip. Lucas looked around for a moment, as if checking for anyone around the room.

"... _But_ ," He began with a suggestive tone. Ness perked up hopefully.

"But?"

"But, we do suspect you should be out of here and up on your feet in say...three weeks or so?" Lucas said, playing with a lock of his hair and looking up through sheepish blond eyelashes, "...And after that, you _won't_ be my patient. Say you and I accidentally bumped into each other? Wouldn't it be a _coincidence_ if you _also_ showed up to the 8:30 showing of "War Against Giygas" at the downtown cinema, three weeks from today?"

Ness blinked, shocked. Lucas continued to gaze back at him with an almost hypnotic gleam in his blue eyes. Ness opened his mouth to speak, but found that his trusty vocal chords had bailed. Lucas quietly snickered to himself. What a cute laugh he had, Ness thought. He somehow managed to break out of his trance.

"H-heh...yeah, that'd be weird. Maybe I might coincidentally show up." Ness stammered, struggling to keep his cool.

"And maybe Claus was originally supposed to go with me, but he bailed, and so I'll have an extra ticket." Lucas suggested, eyebrows raised, "It's a scary movie, I can't watch that alone."

"Mmm," Ness hummed in agreement, "But that's all just hypothetical."

"Oh, of course." Lucas nodded.

Suddenly, a clattering sound alerted him. Ness' eyes went wide, as he looked down. Below them, on the floor was Ness' phone.

"Aw, hey, look at that!" Ness playfully began, "I seem to have dropped my cellular device on the ground. Why, that's what I use to call and text people, using _numbers._ "

Lucas, now catching wind as to what was going on, smirked as he reached down to grab the cellphone. He eyed it, before making direct eye contact with Ness and swiping his thumb up on the screen.

"Oops! I turned it on," Lucas said, "Oh, but you're still safe. It's password protected."

"Then I better not tell you _my passcode is 8375_." Ness said, "Wait, oh no!"

"Aw, you big doofus," Lucas shook his head, "Yikes! My finger slipped! Oh geez, it slipped again. Oh no, I unlocked your phone! Whatever shall I do?"

"Whatever you do, don't go into the contacts setting and add your number."

"Geez, too late!" Lucas cried.

"Golly Moses, What a mess." Ness shook his head as he took his phone back.

Both of them burst into laughter from the lighthearted banter. Lucas was particularly amused, as he'd accidentally let out a snort in his laughter. He quickly gasped and covered his mouth. Ness' jaw dropped, and he leaned over towards him, amazed.

"Whaaat?! You still have the snort!" Ness remembered, "Do it again!"

"Noooo!" Lucas turned away, hiding his crimson face, "Ugh, I keep trying to get rid of that..."

"No! Don't you dare!" Ness insisted. He could remember nearly falling over, lovestruck in his seat when hearing Lucas' laughter from across the classroom. While the blond was terribly softspoken and shy back then, his laugh was unbelievably loud and full of energy. The snort was the best part of it.

Before Ness had the time to reflect on his luck, a beeping noise began to sound. Lucas groaned and rolled his eyes, retrieving a device from his pocket.

" _What?_ Already? That was _not_ fifteen minutes," He muttered, "I'm so sorry, Ness. I'm being called in, I have to run."

"So soon?" Ness teased, "Alright, go save lives and all. Thanks for talking to this dweeb. And thanks for...y'know."

Lucas flashed a grin back, "Anytime. Hey, Ness?" He piped before slipping through the door.

"Yeah?"

"I may have lied a bit. Maybe I _kinda_ had a crush on you." Lucas shrugged, "It was great catching up with you. Tell Ninten that I said hi."

And with that, he was gone. Ness stared at the closed door in amazement and wonder. He couldn't even begin to piece together what had happened in the last fifteen minutes. In one conversation, he'd lived out his high school dream. Never before had he thought such a feeling would be so refreshing. He wanted to thank any God he could think of for giving him such an opportunity. Sitting back, proud of his obviously top notch charm and wit, he crossed his arms.

"Fuckin' _aced_ it." He confidently murmured to himself. He was so cool, he thought.

Realizing that Ninten absolutely had to hear about this, he rushed to grab his phone. Upon opening it, he saw a notification; new contact added. Ness raised his arms toward's the ceiling, praising the heavens. It was like catching a Pokemon, except better, he thought.

' _Ninten, Darls,_ ' He immediately typed to his friend, ' _You remember Jeff, back in school? Yeah. He owes you twenty bucks. Guess who just broke the heart of every single girl in Queen Mary's High School?_ "


End file.
